7 Top Property Management Automation Use Cases

Why is property management automation so crucial to the efficient running of a real estate organization? For one, over 60% of renters in the U.S. now pay their rent online, reflecting a growing demand for digital convenience. As expectations for convenience increase, automation in property management is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity.

There is so much that goes into the proper management of an investment property, that property managers are going to be stretched thin without a robust real estate CRM automating key parts of the process.

Top 7 property management workflow automation use cases

At MRI Software, we develop smart software solutions for real estate organizations and property managers that automate important aspects of your business’ roles and responsibilities. Both our commercial property management software and multifamily software addresses crucial property management challenges, including lead generation, maintenance requests, lease renewals, and more.

1. Lease renewals
2. Tenant notifications
3. Facilitating property tours
4. Tenant screening
5. Collecting rent
6. Lead generation and marketing
7. Maintenance requests

These seven tasks are ideal for property management automation, using state-of-the-art property management software that you can find at MRI Software.

1. Lease renewals

Property management software automates lease renewals by simplifying the process and reducing manual tasks. It sends automated notifications and reminders to property managers and tenants when the renewal period approaches. These systems can be combined with lease abstract software to identify unique contract specifications in advance.

The software provides an online portal where tenants can review and digitally sign lease renewal agreements, eliminating the need for physical paperwork. It automatically generates lease renewal documents based on predefined templates and updates the necessary details from the existing lease. For a larger portfolio, this can be one of the priority use cases (and most expensive to mess up) for automating property management tasks.

This type of commercial or multifamily leasing software can calculate rent adjustments if there are any changes during the renewal. It maintains a centralized database to track the status of lease renewals for all properties and provides reporting and analytics features for analysis. The software can integrate with communication channels like email or text messaging to automate communication with tenants. Overall, automating lease management in property management can streamline the lease renewal process, improve efficiency, and reduce errors for property managers and tenants.

2. Tenant notifications

Property management software automates tenant notifications by offering predefined templates, scheduled notifications, event triggers, integration with communication channels, personalization options, automated reminders, and two-way communication features. The software provides ready-made notification templates for lease renewals, rent payments, maintenance requests, and announcements, ensuring a standardized format.

Property managers can schedule notifications in advance, specifying the date and time for automatic delivery. Event triggers enable the tenant messaging software to send notifications based on specific events, such as lease expirations. Integration with communication channels like email, SMS, and in-app notifications allows updates to be sent through tenants’ preferred channels. Notifications can be personalized by dynamically inserting tenant-specific information.

The resident portal software can also send automated reminders for rent payments and maintenance appointments. Additionally, property management software provides a tenant portal or messaging system for two-way communication, enabling tenants to respond to notifications and engage with property managers directly. Overall, property management software streamlines tenant communication and enhances the tenant experience.

3. Facilitating property tours

Property management software automates apartment tours by offering online scheduling, automated confirmation and reminders, digital tour information, visitor check-in and tracking, follow-up automation, and integration with communication channels. For multifamily properties, tours take up such a large amount of a property manager’s bandwidth that multifamily automation is a must-have.

Prospective tenants can schedule apartment tours through an online platform based on real-time availability, eliminating the need for manual scheduling. Automated confirmation emails or text messages are sent to both the property manager and the prospective tenant, along with reminders closer to the tour date. Digital tour information, such as property details, floor plans, photos, and virtual tours, can be provided to prospective tenants before the physical tour.

During the tour, property management software facilitates visitor check-in and tracking, maintaining records and enhancing security. Automated follow-up communication can be sent to prospective tenants after the tour, increasing engagement and conversion rates. Integration with communication channels allows for smooth communication throughout the tour process. Overall, property management software streamlines and enhances the apartment tour experience for both property managers and prospective tenants.

4. Tenant screening

Property management software automates tenant screening by offering online applications, automated background checks, income verification, predefined screening criteria, application review workflows, communication features, and ensuring compliance and data security. Prospective tenants can submit applications online, eliminating the need for physical paperwork.

The software integrates with screening services to automate background checks, including credit history, criminal records, and eviction records. Income verification is streamlined by allowing tenants to securely upload financial documents for automated analysis. Property managers can define specific screening criteria, and the software automatically compares applicant information against these requirements.

The software facilitates an organized review and approval workflow, allowing property managers to evaluate multiple applications efficiently. Automated communication keeps applicants informed throughout the process. Property management software ensures compliance with regulations and maintains data security. Overall, this type of multifamily operation automation simplifies tenant screening, saving time, reducing manual effort, and improving accuracy for property managers.

5. Collecting rent

Property management software automates rent collection by providing online payment portals, automated rent reminders, recurring payment options, late fee calculations, tenant account management, integration with accounting systems, and reporting and analytics features.

Tenants can make rent payments securely and conveniently through online portals using various payment methods. The online rent payment portal sends automated reminders to tenants about upcoming payment due dates, and tenants can set up recurring payments for automatic deductions. Late fees can be automatically calculated and applied based on predefined rules.

Tenant account management allows property managers to track payment history and outstanding balances. Integration with accounting systems streamlines financial record-keeping and reporting. Property managers can generate reports and analyze rent payment trends. Overall, property management software simplifies and automates rent collection, providing convenience for tenants and efficiency for property managers.

6. Lead generation and marketing

Property management software automates lead generation through customizable lead capture forms, automated lead tracking, email campaigns, lead scoring and segmentation, integration with listing platforms, lead analytics and reporting, and communication and follow-up automation. The software simplifies the process of capturing potential leads by providing forms on websites or landing pages and feeding that into real estate lead follow-up workflows. These tenets apply to both commercial and multifamily lead automation.

Leads are automatically tracked and organized, eliminating manual data entry. Email campaigns and marketing automation nurture leads and provide property information. Lead scoring and segmentation prioritize leads based on predefined criteria. Integration with listing platforms ensures up-to-date property listings.

Analytics and reporting features enable property managers to track lead generation performance and make data-driven decisions. Communication and follow-up automation maintain engagement with leads. Property management software automates lead generation, saving time, improving lead management efficiency, and enhancing marketing efforts for property managers. Commercial and multifamily marketing automation enables you to operate with a leaner, less-stressed staff.

7. Maintenance requests

Property management software automates maintenance requests by providing an online portal for tenants to submit requests, automated notifications to property managers, generating work orders, assigning and dispatching tasks, tracking request status, facilitating documentation and communication, and maintaining a maintenance history for reporting.

Tenants can easily submit maintenance requests through the online portal, triggering automated notifications to property managers or maintenance teams. Work orders are generated automatically, containing all necessary details. Property managers can assign requests to specific staff members or contractors, who receive notifications and can begin addressing the issues. The software enables tracking and provides status updates to tenants.

Documentation and communication related to requests can be done within the system, ensuring a centralized and organized process. The software also maintains a maintenance history for future reference and reporting. Overall, property management software automates and streamlines the maintenance request process, improving efficiency, communication, and documentation for property managers and enhancing the tenant experience.

Property Management Automation FAQ’s

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